The Purple Row staff shares their favorite Ryan McMahon moments and memories

The third baseman was traded to the New York Yankees on Friday

On Friday, the news broke that Ryan McMahon had been traded to the New York Yankees after playing 1,012 games for the Colorado Rockies. The third baseman was drafted in the second round of the 2013 MLB Draft and made his MLB debut on August 12, 2017 (you can read his recollection here).

Over the past 12 years, McMahon has been part of both good and bad (and historically bad) Rockies teams and has quietly made a name for himself around the league, even making the All-Star Game last year in Arlington, Texas. The Purple Row staff has watched RyMac grow into the player we all know and love, and wanted to share their favorite moments and memories.

Here’s what we said:

Sam Bradfield

Ok, so I might be biased when it comes to Ryan McMahon.

I first met McMahon at the Arizona Fall League in 2016 when I was at a low place in my life personally. He was the Rockies’ representative in the AFL’s equivalent of the Home Run Derby/skills showcase, and I got his autograph. I went to a bunch of AFL games that year, and it really helped me fall back in love with baseball and settle into a new chapter. If I hadn’t gone to those games, I never would’ve come across Purple Row and never would’ve gotten on this beat.

Fast forward, McMahon debuted in August 2017, and I started writing for Purple Row in December 2017. He was my second-ever Rockies interview during spring training in 2018 (mere minutes after Trevor Story), and I’d just met his grandparents randomly in the stands at Salt River Fields the day before, so that was a great icebreaker. Additionally, I used that summer to practice interviewing players by asking them if they’d played musical instruments, and while McMahon did not personally play anything, he was very intrigued to learn about other players who did, so he went with me to ask a few others if they had one night after a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks (none of them did in that go-around).

RyMac and I have had many memorable conversations over the years, and I’m grateful that he always made time for me, even after plenty of bad games or when he had other things he needed to do pregame — he always made time to come back and answer my questions or even just to say hi.

On the field, I think there are a couple of moments that personally stood out for me:

• His first-career home run against the Phillies on June 14, 2018

• His home run against the Arizona Diamondbacks on May 30, 2019 where I accidentally cheered in the press box (the one and only time… oops!)

After all, “I back, you back, we back a RyMac jack!”

There are plenty of others I could dig up (and others have brought up some below), but these are two that I personally remember.

I knew this move was coming, and it was the right move for the organization in this moment, but the end of this era still stings a little harder than some of the others before him because of the time I spent getting to know him as both a baseball player and a human being.

Thank you, Ryan, for all of the wonderful moments and memories over the last 8+ years. I’ll miss you in the Rockies clubhouse, but give ‘em hell in New York!

Renee Dechert

If there’s a thing that defined Ryan McMahon’s time in Denver it was defensive gems — we watched a lot of them — and one of my regrets is that he’ll never win a Gold Glove at third base as a Rockie.

But as I was thinking about moments that stood out, it had to be this one:

I was at Coors Field for that game, and watching it unfold was one of the most amazing things I’ve witnessed in person as a baseball fan. But the thing that stays with me was McMahon’s initial moment when he recognized that maybe, just maybe, the Rockies could do something very cool.

So he fielded the ball, and set things in motion. Clearly, he didn’t do this all by himself, but he got it started.

Here’s what he said after the game:

There’s a lot I’m going to miss about Ryan McMahon. He was always a great person to ask questions because he gave thoughtful, honest answers. We watched him grow up and move from first to second to, finally, his natural position, third base.

As Rockies fans, we’ve been treated to some staggeringly good defense at third base, and I’m not sure when we’ll see it again. But Mac at the hot corner is something I’m going to miss.

Joelle Milholm

Like Renee said, Rockies have been spoiled with amazingly talented defensive third basemen. Going from Nolan Arenado to Ryan McMahon was very special. I will miss those amazing runs into foul territory to grab popups that were out of range for most players, lightning-fast grabs on line drives and throws across the diamond that seemed impossible.

But for a single highlight, my favorite McMahon memory came during the home opener in 2024. In front of a full house at Coors Field, McMahon erased a 7-6 deficit and replaced it with a 10-7 grand slam, walk-off win.

After the franchise’s first 100-loss season in 2023, this was a great way to start play in Colorado in 2024. It didn’t last long, but for that day, it was fun to be a Rockies fan. When RyMac hit homers, they often went far and were a sight to behold. This is the one I will remember the most.

McMahon’s departure marks the end of an era that was exciting with postseason appearances in 2017, when he made his MLB debut, and 2018. McMahon rose up as a veteran on a sinking ship as the seasons went on after that. I wish him the best in New York and hope he and the Rockies are better off without each other.

Mac Wilcox

I’m going to be a bit selfish here.

When I first received press credentials a few years ago, I was incredibly nervous. Excited, sure, but also very anxious about actually going and talking with actual MLB players, coaches, and managers. After all, who was I but a jabroni that just happened to love baseball? They didn’t know me.

When I entered the Rockies clubhouse for the first time, it was Ryan McMahon that helped assuage my fears with his kind and welcoming attitude. Immediately engaging and consistently fun, we had a fun bit of banter when we noticed that, strangely enough, he seemed to hit a home run when I showed up to cover games. Is there analytical data to back this up? Maybe, but I couldn’t find the Baseball Reference page for “When Mac is present.”

Anyway. Cut to Opening Day of 2024, when RyMac crushed the walk-off grand slam that Joelle mentioned.

As iconic as that moment was, it holds special significance to me. After the game, the great Patrick Lyons asked McMahon how that moment, that literal dream scenario come true, felt. McMahon, unbelievably, gave this answer:

That’s pretty neat.

Thank you, Ryan, for the shout-out. More than that, thanks for being such a great person and a quintessential aspect of the Colorado Rockies for the last nine years. Go show New York what’s up.

Skyler Timmins

I have to be honest, I don’t really have any favorite memories of Ryan McMahon, per se, as some of my fellow writers have. I’ve never been in the clubhouse to ask him questions or interacted with him as a normal guy. My experience has been watching him on TV and later writing about him for this very site from afar. As a fan, it’s been interesting trying to find the middle ground of how I feel about the fact that he is no longer with the team. Aside from the walk-off grand slam or other notable home runs, he was never the star player the team hoped he would be, but in reality, McMahon never really needed to be.

I remember when he was first called up; I was excited about the prospect of him being on the team. He was one of the first prospects that I really got excited about as I began to take more notice of that aspect of the game. My hope was that he could be an answer at first base if the team would let him get more reps there to fill out an already impressive infield. That ended up not being the case as he eventually took over at second base and late third base. He always seemed a remnant of a bygone era for the Rockies, and I sometimes unfairly ragged on him because of it and his perceived failures as a player.

However, what has always impressed me with McMahon and my favorite thing about him has been his durability and resilience. Yes, the team and fans always placed more pressure on him to be the next Rockies great and were disappointed when he didn’t reach the lofty goals set before him. Yet, despite the highs and lows, he showed up every day and owned being a Colorado Rockie. He was durable, determined, and, no matter what, kept a cool head because he knew who he was as a player. He’s always seemed the type of player who stays true to himself as a man, and that is something I’ll always admire. He knew who he was, what his strengths and weaknesses were, and did everything he could to be successful with all that information. The Rockies certainly lost something that is hard to gauge with the trade of McMahon.

Adam Peterson

Ryan McMahon’s time in Denver coincided with a time when I was largely not in Denver. And since that time was largely spent working on a doctorate while raising kids, the Rockies took a major back seat in my life. The Rockies have been famously not-good during this time as well. In short, I don’t have much in the memory bank for RyMac.

We returned home in the summer of 2023, and we had the chance to take our kids to Major League Baseball games at Coors Field, again. In April 2024, as a sort of late birthday present for my oldest, we pulled him out of school for the home opener. He had hit the age where he could hone in on the game itself, rather than the between innings entertainment, for much of the duration. We spent the late innings wandering the concourse a bit, and were mostly spared watching the Rockies blow a four-run ninth inning lead. Still, we watched the bottom half next to the camera well beyond the left field foul pole. Just in case.

By the time the Rockies loaded the bases with one out, my oldest was ready for a home run and I assured him all they needed was a base hit. I thought I got what I wanted when RyMac swung at the first pitch and drove the ball towards the out of town scoreboard, but my son got what he wanted: a walk off grand slam.

That I got to enjoy that with my son would have been sweet enough. That we were able to celebrate with my parents and sister (who had stayed in the seats) made it even sweeter. If nothing else, Ryan McMahon gave us that moment.

Evan Lang

Honestly, I find it tricky to pick out my favorite Ryan McMahon plays during his time in Colorado because he wasn’t exactly a “flashy” player. Thinking about it, I realize that thanks to Ryan McMahon—and his predecessor Nolan Arenado before him—the flashy became routine at the hot corner in Colorado.

McMahon so regularly made the kinds of jaw-dropping defensive plays and web gems we became so accustomed to over the last decade and change at Coors Field that they became mundane in their own right.

Rockies fans have had it very good for a very long time when it comes to third base defense.

It has been my absolute pleasure to watch Ryan McMahon grow into the man and player he is today. From a fresh-faced 18-year-old right out of high school in the 2013 draft, to the 30-year-old husband and father we know today, Ryan McMahon sticks out to me as one of the first Rockies players I really got to see “grow up” with the team after I truly became an adult myself. It has also been a privilege to write about McMahon since joining Purple Row during the 2021 season.

There is so much more I would have liked to see McMahon accomplish here in Denver. He should have already won a Gold Glove after being a finalist for the last four seasons. Instead he was twice robbed by his former teammate in Arenado. He also could have arguably been an All-Star during his strong 2021 campaign. I would have also liked to see him rewarded for his trial by fire during his first two seasons, which were the last seasons in which the Rockies reached the postseason.

Thankfully, i did at least get to witness McMahon become an All-Star as he suited up for the Midsummer Classic in Texas last season.

I know that moving on is the right move for this organization, even if it’s an emotionally difficult one. I won’t find myself rooting for the Yankees—I’m just not wired that way—but like DJ LeMahieu beforehand I will always root for our intrepid third baseman. From every “RyMac Jack” to each gold-worthy play at third base, McMahon will have a place in my heart.

And I’m not going to lie, I found myself getting a little misty when I found out that McMahon had chosen to wear no. 19 in New York in honor of his father Jim, and in honor of his Rockies teammate Charlie Blackmon.

It makes this parting of ways a little easier. There’s no animosity. There was no sudden-blindside. Instead, we part as friends with a mutual understanding of what comes next.

I wish you the best in New York, Ryan McMahon.

★ ★ ★

From all of us here at Purple Row, thank you, RyMac, for everything. We will miss you in purple pinstripes, but can’t wait to see what you do in Yankees pinstripes.

Until next time!